LONDON – Manchester United’s final game of the Premier League season against Bournemouth on Sunday was abandoned following a security alert at Old Trafford, as Arsenal snatched second place in the table from rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

What should have been a celebratory last weekend of the league season around the country was overshadowed as bomb disposal experts were called to carry out a controlled explosion on a suspicious package at Old Trafford.

The Stretford End and Sir Alex Ferguson Stand were evacuated as the match was called off 20 minutes before the scheduled 1400 GMT kick-off in Manchester, with United later confirming a security alert caused the abrupt cancellation at the 75,600-capacity stadium.

“Due to the discovery of a suspect package in the North-West Quadrant of the ground, the match with Bournemouth has been abandoned today on police advice,” a United spokesman said in a statement.

By 3.15pm local time the remaining parts of Old Trafford were evacuated and shortly before 4pm an Army bomb disposal unit van was seen arriving at the stadium to carry out a controlled explosion.

The Premier League said the match would be rearranged for “as soon as practically possible”, although with Manchester United due to face Crystal Palace in next Saturday’s FA Cup final and Euro 2016 warm-up fixtures scheduled for the following week there is little room for manoeuvre.

“When it comes to matters of security it is obviously right that Manchester United and the Premier League place the safety of supporters and employees foremost,” a Premier League statement read.

Man United EPL match at Old Trafford abandoned after security alert

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Despite the worrying scenes at Old Trafford, the other nine matches went ahead as planned.

Completing a bad day for United, Manchester City drew 1-1 at Swansea City to effectively guarantee fourth place and Champions League qualification at the expense of their local rivals, who are three points behind them with a goal difference of only +12 compared to +30 for Manuel Pellegrini’s men.

City took the lead as Kelechi Iheanacho slotted home in the fifth minute after Sergio Aguero’s shot was pushed into the young Nigeria striker’s path.

Initially, referee Mike Dean appeared to disallow the goal for offside, but the official changed his mind after a moment of indecision.

Swansea equalled in first-half stoppage time through Andre Ayew, whose free-kick deflected in off City midfielder Fernando, but the visitors held on to ensure Pellegrini departed on a high, with Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola to replace him in the close-season.

Capping a frustrating climax to the season for Tottenham, Mauricio Pochettino’s team came third as their 5-1 humiliation at relegated Newcastle United, combined with Arsenal’s 4-0 win over bottom club Aston Villa, saw the Gunners leapfrog their north London rivals to finish second.

After losing the title to Leicester City, Tottenham have also wasted a chance to finish above Arsenal for the first time since 1994-95.

Georginio Wijnaldum struck for Newcastle in the 19th minute before Aleksandar Mitrovic added the second six minutes before half-time.

Although Erik Lamela got one back for Tottenham on the hour and Mitrovic was sent off after 67 minutes, Wijnaldum stroked home a 73rd-minute penalty.

Rolando Aarons made it four in the 85th minute and Daryl Janmaat added a late fifth to compound Tottenham’s misery.

Arsenal gleefully seized on Tottenham’s woes with an Olivier Giroud-inspired demolition of Villa at the Emirates Stadium.

France striker Giroud bagged a hat-trick, with the goals coming in the fifth, 78th minute and 80th minutes before an own goal by Villa ‘keeper Mark Bunn.

At Stamford Bridge, Leicester brought the curtain down on their fairytale season with a 1-1 draw against Chelsea, who gave the Foxes players a guard of honour as they walked onto the pitch before kick-off.

Cesc Fabregas put Chelsea ahead with a 66th-minute penalty, but Danny Drinkwater’s 82nd-minute equaliser ensured Leicester finished 10 points clear at the top.

Everton looked revitalised by the sacking of much-maligned manager Roberto Martinez as they defeated relegated Norwich City 3-0 at Goodison Park thanks to goals from James McCarthy, Leighton Baines with a penalty and Kevin Mirallas.

Southampton booked a Europa League place with a 4-1 thrashing of Crystal Palace at St Mary’s, with the goals coming from Sadio Mane, Graziano Pelle, Ryan Bertrand and Steven Davis.

Seventh-placed West Ham United were beaten 2-1 at Stoke City, which means they need sixth-placed United to defeat Palace in the Cup final to qualify for the Europa League.

Liverpool warmed up for Wednesday’s Europa League final against Sevilla in Basel with a 1-1 draw at West Bromwich Albion.

Watford drew 2-2 with Sunderland in the last match for departing Hornets boss Quique Sanchez Flores.

MANCHESTER, United Kingdom – Army experts blew up a suspect package at Old Trafford on Sunday after tens of thousands of fans were evacuated from the stadium ahead of Manchester United’s final English Premier League game of the season, police said.

The emergency was signalled just 20 minutes before the scheduled start of the game in the 75,600 capacity stadium.

United and Bournemouth players were warming up on the pitch when the club ordered fans out of two stands.

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The game “has been abandoned, fans are leaving the ground. Please avoid the area if possible”, Manchester police said on their Twitter account.

Army specialists were called and police later announced that “a controlled explosion has just been carried out within the stadium by bomb disposal experts at Old Trafford.” There was no immediate word on whether the device was a bomb.

A United spokesman said the suspect package was found “in the North-West Quadrant of the ground” at the Stretford End and that the match had to be abandoned.

Inside the stadium, announcements were made on the public address system that security staff should invoke “operation red code”.

There was no panic inside Old Trafford, one of the world’s most famous sporting venues, as half of the stands at Old Trafford were evacuated.

Man United EPL match at Old Trafford abandoned after security alert

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AFP, Reuters, AsiaOne

Public announcements instructed supporters in the South and East Stands – including travelling Bournemouth fans – to remain in their seats before the game was called off.

It is the second time in less than a week that Manchester United have been involved in a security alert.

Their game at West Ham United on Tuesday was delayed after their team bus was attacked by fans.

Louis van Gaal’s side went into the game seeking a victory that would give them a chance of finishing fourth, and thus qualifying for next season’s Champions League.

There was no initial indication of the seriousness of the incident but by the scheduled 3:00pm kick-off (1400 GMT), stewards outside the ground were telling supporters that the game had been abandoned and, within minutes, the decision was confirmed by police.

People who remained inside the stadium were told to stay in their seats “while the forecourt is cleared of fans already evacuated from the stadium”.

The club held up announcing the decision to fans remaining in two other stands for another 10 minutes, to avoid congestion outside the ground. By 3.15pm, the remaining parts of Old Trafford were evacuated.

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Reuters, AFP

Soldiers from the British Army’s ‘bomb squad’ were then sent to Old Trafford.

Assistant Chief Constable John O’Hare of Greater Manchester Police said: “We are doing everything we can to investigate this item as quickly as possible, however our priority is obviously to ensure the safety of everyone in the stadium and surrounding area.

“As a result, today’s game has been abandoned and a controlled evacuation of the stadium has now taken place.” He added: “We are awaiting the imminent arrival of military colleagues to come and support us and establish what exactly we are dealing with.” With Manchester United playing Crystal Palace in Saturday’s FA Cup final at Wembley, it may be more than a week before the Bournemouth match takes place.

A statement issued by the Premier League said they would “seek to rearrange the fixture as soon as practically possible and will advise fans accordingly”.

Although Bournemouth are safe from the threat of relegation and cannot qualify for Europe, Sunday’s match was not without significance for the south coast side.

Eddie Howe’s men, who started the weekend in 16th place, were looking to completed a league double over United, with the amount of prize money they receive dependent on where they finish in the table.